Chapter 18: When the Big Shot Arrives, the Wind Fills the Building

The room was very quiet. Shen Baizhou didn’t speak, and Su Hongdou didn’t know how to start a conversation. Right now, she felt a little afraid to look at Shen Baizhou, so she pretended to watch the cat instead, engaging in a silent staring contest with it…

And this cat was truly something. It was unbearably aloof, completely refusing to be touched—if she leaned closer, it would step back; if she reached out, it shook its head. From the moment she entered, she hadn’t managed to touch a single hair of it, leaving her utterly frustrated.

“Do you want to touch it?” Shen Baizhou asked from behind.

“Yeah.” She nodded, looking pitiful.

“This cat has a bit of a temper. I don’t know why, but it only lets me touch it…” Shen Baizhou reached out, and the kitten instantly leapt into his arms, curling up comfortably.

Shen Baizhou carried the kitten over to Su Hongdou. “Here, I’ll hold it. You can touch it now.”

Ah, so soft! Su Hongdou reached out in surprise and stroked it freely. Wow, I finally get to touch it…

“What’s its name?”

“I haven’t decided yet,” Shen Baizhou frowned. “This little guy is so clingy, almost like a dog. Maybe we should call it Er Gouzi.”

“Er Gouzi?” Su Hongdou hesitated. “Isn’t that a bit inappropriate for such a beautiful cat?”

“Nothing inappropriate about it.” Shen Baizhou said. After all, in five days it would go back to the Cao family. He thought to himself: Da Zhuzi, Er Gouzi, Xiao Shuanzi… names are just names.

“Er Gouzi is so soft.” Su Hongdou closed her eyes in bliss, her long lashes trembling as she petted the fluffy fur.

“Hongdou, can I ask you for a favor?” Shen Baizhou asked.

“Can I stay here for four more days? I mean, including tonight.”

“Sure.” Su Hongdou thought to herself: the more days you stay, the better.

“Thanks a lot.” Shen Baizhou breathed a sigh of relief and went silent. After telling the story of his past, he felt very low.

“Your ex-girlfriend really is a jerk,” Su Hongdou said, though her eyes didn’t dare meet his, focused entirely on petting the cat.

“Ugh, don’t mention her. One must always look forward,” Shen Baizhou shook his head. “Don’t you agree?”

“Mm, don’t mind that kind of woman. She’ll regret it later,” Su Hongdou said softly. “Your future will be amazing.”

“I hope so,” Shen Baizhou forced a bitter smile. “Because tomorrow is the day that decides my fate…”

His mind was filled with thoughts of tomorrow’s pitch meeting—whether he could become a director all depended on how well he could realize the script for The Soundmaster.

That night, Shen Baizhou didn’t sleep at all. After finishing The Soundmaster script, it was already 4 a.m. He then forced himself to spend another three and a half hours formatting and proofreading, completing the PPT for presentation. He made the PPT very detailed and refined; at a pitch meeting, a good PPT gives an edge—he knew this very well. After all, people are visual creatures…

By 9 a.m., Shen Baizhou could barely keep his eyes open. Counting the previous day’s fiasco with Su Hongdou, he had been up for two consecutive nights. He connected his portable hard drive, opened the folder with the PPT, and his head drooped—he fell asleep right on the desk.

“The Soundmaster?” Sheng Jiong, peeking at the monitor behind Shen Baizhou’s desk, let out a “huh.”

“Just by the name, you can tell it’s a trash film. Totally unappealing…” He looked disdainfully at the sleeping Shen Baizhou. This guy stayed up all night just to produce this? Sheng Jiong had come early this morning and, after seeing Shen Baizhou asleep, planned to sneak a peek at what he had written. But seeing the title, he didn’t even bother to open it and went straight up to the 19th floor, into Huang Liang’s office.

“Liang, I took a quick look at what he wrote—it’s not worth mentioning. It’s called The Soundmaster! You can tell by the name that it’s a flop. Who would be interested in something like that…”

“Shen Baizhou just graduated. Of course, his writing level isn’t good. But what I’m planning today isn’t just about him…” Huang Liang sneered darkly. “Destroying Shen Baizhou is easy. The more important thing is using him to ruin Liu Susu! That woman’s been making trouble for me repeatedly. I’ve been looking for a chance to deal with her, and Shen Baizhou just handed it to me!”

“Liang, you mean…”

“Go spread the word—Shen Baizhou is Liu Susu’s connection. He has no talent, no qualifications, yet shameless Liu Susu gave him a spot in the pitch meeting… Not only that, Liu Susu plans to rig it so he gets second place. This pitch meeting is just a formality…”

“Oh, I get it. I’ll spread it across all chat groups.”

“Uploading online isn’t enough. When people smoke, have coffee, or eat, those are opportunities too. Don’t do anything else this morning—just focus on this. Make sure everyone knows this ‘inside info’ before the pitch meeting in the afternoon!”

“Got it, Liang. I’ll do it now.”

“Wait, did you see Shen Baizhou’s PPT?”

“Yeah, that guy must have stayed up all night writing it. He’s asleep at his desk now…”

“Perfect. Shen Baizhou is asleep, and no one else has arrived yet. Use this ‘Warta Virus Cracker’ to hack his PPT file…” Huang Liang sneered, handing over a USB drive.

“This is black market software designed to corrupt files. Once cracked, it installs a remote bomb mechanism. When I click it, his PPT will automatically fail and won’t play…”

“Wow, really?” Sheng Jiong knew Huang Liang had all sorts of black market tools, but he asked skeptically, “Liang, Shen Baizhou’s script is terrible anyway. Isn’t this overkill just to mess with his PPT?”

“You don’t understand. His script is already bad, everyone knows he’s a connection. If his PPT fails on stage, how do you think he’ll perform?”

“Oh, I get it! He’ll look like an idiot and won’t be able to say a word…”

“That’s exactly the effect I want! Show everyone what a lackey of Liu Susu looks like! Messing with someone means doing it thoroughly!”

“Brilliant!” Sheng Jiong gave a thumbs-up. “That scene will make everyone laugh so hard! Not only will Shen Baizhou have to get out of the company fast, but Liu Susu will also lose face!”

“Hmph.” Huang Liang scoffed. “A young girl, just graduated, got lucky to become the president’s assistant, dares to challenge me? She doesn’t know her place!”

At 2 p.m., the 19th-floor “Bright Peak” conference room. The pitch meeting hadn’t started, but employees had nearly filled the entire room. Micro-internet films were a new industry segment, and every department paid attention. Plus, after the rumor that had spread all morning, many people came to see the commotion.

“You all know about Shen Baizhou, right?” Short Mao Yi blinked. “Our photography department has been talking about it all morning.”

“Seems like everyone’s here for that…” Tall Fang Kuan chuckled. “Our actors’ department is talking about it too. Liu Susu really went overboard this time!”

“Yeah, some worthless connection dare push their way in? She deserves the title Wei Zhongxian!” Guo Miao, with her silver-gray hair, touched up her makeup while talking on her phone. She drew her eyeliner and said, “I heard Shen Baizhou is already guaranteed second place—what a chaotic mess…”

“He won’t get second,” Mao Yi smiled mysteriously, lowering his voice. “The latest news is, a big shot is coming today.”

“Oh? Who?” Everyone leaned in with interest.

Mao Yi grinned mysteriously, teasing. “You know this competition is decided by partner votes, right? Partner #2, Minister Sima, has two votes; Partner #3, Li Shuqing, two votes; CEO Huang Liang, two votes; CEO assistant Liu Susu, two votes. That’s four votes total. Sima and Huang Liang don’t get along with Liu Susu, but Li Shuqing is close with her. Two vs. two—Shen Baizhou might have had a chance… But today, Minister Sima invited a big shot, and this person also votes!”

“Can’t Liu Susu just bribe this big shot?” Guo Miao asked. “Isn’t capital omnipotent?”

“Nope. Everyone can be bribed, but not this big shot—not even our CEO, not even the CEO’s dad, can influence him—he answers to no one!”

“So powerful?” Fang Kuan didn’t believe it. “Who is this big shot?”

“You all know him…” Mao Yi smiled mysteriously. “Everyone in this room, even the cleaning lady, knows this person.”

Everyone was stunned.

“Who exactly is it?” Guo Miao slapped his arm.

“Look, here he comes!” Mao Yi pointed toward the door…